A few years ago, not too distant a memory now, I owned this dress. Although it was a few sizes too big, that didn’t stop me wearing it all the time. I loved it too much and eventually, it was relegated to ‘work wear’. Cruelly taken from the Premier League of dresses to Division One, before it was finally given the old heave-ho and sent on its eBay way. Do you ever do that, grow so over familiar with a dress that you resort to packing it on its merry way? I must have been quackers to let this one go! (I know, punny not funny)

Well, when Chloe (New Girl in Toon) decided to send me her beloved duck dress as part of Frock Swap 15, it felt like fate. In my hands, I had a dress I wore in my mid-twenties. Like Chloe said, when you hit 30 self-doubt creeps in and I asked myself, ‘Am I too old to be wearing ducks?’ When the truth is, of course not – I simply linked this dress with being younger. So, I decided to ditch the traditional mustard pairing (did I really just say that?) and restyle it in a way I hadn’t before. Starting with a bright green satchel…

The satchel is, of course, made by the Cambridge Satchel Company. If you’ve been reading Polkadot Pink for some time, you’ll know how much I adore the quality and style of these satchels. Before Christmas, they were being sold for less than half price in a Paperchase outlet store. Voila! A Christmas present, for myself, was purchased. Since then, it’s been waiting for an outfit based on neutrals and here it is!

Outfit Details

// Duck dress :: Primark (Chloe’s Frock Swap) //

// Sailor blouse :: Forever 21 //

// Hot pink cardigan :: H&M //

// Mary Jane flats :: Office //

// Green satchel :: Cambridge Satchel Company via Paperchase //

If there’s one thing I’m trying to do, it’s layer more sleeveless dresses. Being on a high street spending ban (what, I hadn’t mentioned it?) is forcing me to be more creative. Whether that be layering dresses with midi skirts or layering blouses to create a pinafore effect, I’m having fun trying to reinvent my wardrobe. I’ve featured this blouse many times before, it’s a great sailor blouse from Forever 21. It was really cheap, but I went to a Widowspeak gig and the entry stamp on my hand stained it forever. Waste not, want not!

So, now you’ve seen how I wore it, here’s how Chloe wore it:(See how I’m stealing the satchel idea?)

So far, Erica has styled Ally’s beautiful tulle skirt – which shall now be known as the ‘tulle skirt of dreams’ and Char has styled my bird dress. I’m looking forward to seeing how Chloe and Ally style their Frock Swap parcels, but for now, it’s off to the post office!